Piano-action.



G. C. SNYDER.

PIANO ACTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 24, 1911.

Patented Apr. 25, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I.

G. C. SNYDER.

PIANO ACTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 24. 1911.

1, 1 80,675 I Patented Apr. 25, 1916.

4 ISHEETSSHEET 2.

M... J 6- C- SIfyCZeI rm: COLUMBIA PLANOGIIM'H cm, WASHINGTON c.

G. C. SNYDER.

PIANO ACTION. APPLICATION FILED JAN-24, I911.

1,180,675. Patented Apr. 25,1916.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

THE COLUMBIA PLANGGRAPH co., WASHINGTON, D. c.

G. C. SNYDER.

PIANO ACTION.

APPLICATION men JAN.24. 1911.

Patented Apr. 25, 1916.

4 SHEETSSHEET 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE C. SNYDER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOB, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE STAIB ABENDSCHEIN COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

PIANO-ACTION.

Application filed. January 2d, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that GEORGE G. SNYDER, citizen of the United States, residing at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piano-Actions, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to piano actions and particularly to the hammer actuating and tripping mechanism thereof.

The invention has the following objects: To provide a piano action which shall be compact, simple and positive in action and composed of but few parts easily separable from each other. To provide a construction permitting the jack to be sprung outwardly from the main action rail into such position that the screw holding the coacting hammer-butt flange to the rail may, without the necessity of straining the jack to one side and, thereby injuring its pivot or the necessity of removing the key or wippen, be readily engaged by a screw driver. To provide means whereby the jack tripping mechanism may be located entirely on the inner side of the jack, thus reducing the space, taken up by the action and providing a larger space for piano player devices in front of the action; To provide tripping means which shall tri p the jack very quickly and positively and in which a regulating rail is used, firmly attached to the action rail and therefore not liable to warp or get loose, and in this connection to provide the jack with a tripping finger readily adjustable with relation to the regulating rail so as to vary the instant of contact between the tripping finger and the said regulating rail. To provide a hammenbutt and jack, so constructed with relation to each other that the jack will easily and readily move to a working position beneath the hammer-butt upon a slight release of the key, thus permitting a quick repetition of a note. To provide the hammer-butt and jack with coacting projections or teeth whereby the hammer will be drawn back to its full retracted position after each full actuation thereof, thus doing away with a bridle tape and supporting wire for this purpose.

A further object is to provide means for positively locking the hammer with the jack upon the, rebound thereof froma blow Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 25, 1916.

Serial No. 604,441.

against the strings, the hammer being stopped and locked always at the same distance from the strings no matter how hard or how easy the blow on the key may be, the said means acting to positively draw the hammer to locked position a distance just sufiicient to clear the strings, and further in this connection, to so construct the hammer stop, that a very slight release of the key will permit the jack to shift to working position beneath the h ammer-butt ready for a repetition.

A still further object is to provide in connection with the hammer stop, means whereby the stop may be adjusted relative to the jack so that the top of the jack, after a blow of the hammer, will be held very close to the leather of the hammer-butt though not necessarily in contact therewith, and thus in position for an immediate repetition of the note.

Other objects and advantages will be pointed out in the course of the following description.

In the drawings, 1 have shown two embodiments of my invention as applied to the action of an upright piano.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a piano action, the rails upon which the action is mounted being in section, and the parts being in their normal position before the key is actuated, Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the parts in the position taken at the instant the hammer strikes the strings, Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the position taken by the parts upon the rebound of the hammer at the moment when the hammer is locked by the jack, Fig. at is a similar view showing the position taken by the parts when the key is released, it being assumed that the hammer is arrested in its movement to normal position, Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the jack detached, the jack being broken away to show the tripping finger and the view illustrating diagrammatically the proper position of the tripping finger with relation to the axis of the jack,'Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the hammer-butt and the back stop mounted thereon, Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail perspective view of the butt end of the jack, Fig. 8 is a side elevation of a jack and hammer, this figure showing a modified form of back stop and a moditied form of jack, Fig. 9, is a side elevation of a portionv of a piano action showing a modification of my invention, the main rail of the action being in section and the parts being in their normal position, Fig. 10, is a fragmentary front elevation of the action rail shown in Fig. 9 and the adjustable regulating rail mounted thereon, Fig. 11 is a fragmentary perspective view of the hammer-butt and stop molding after the parts are glued together and before an individual hammer-butt and stop having been cut off, Fig. 12 is a side elevation of a hammer-butt and stop cut off from the molding shown in Fig. 11, and Fig. 13 is a side elevation of a modified form of jack, being illustrated in connection with the regulating rail of the preferred form of the invention.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

In carrying out the invention, I employ a main action rail 2 and a rail 3. Cooperating with the tongue rail is the abstract 4 adapted to be actuated by the key 5. The abstract is pivotally connected to a wippen 6 which, however, is shorter than the conventional type of wippen and the wippen is pivotally connected to the main action rail by the flange 7. Pivotally connecting the abstract with the link rail is a tongue 8 which is swingingly supported by the flange 9. Mounted upon the wippen is the damper spoon 10 and mounted upon the main action rail is the hammer-butt flange 11 which is detachably held in place by a screw 11. The hammer rest rail is designated at 12 and is provided with a felt 13. The string is shown at 14 and arranged in the rear of the string is the hammer spring rail 15 to which is connected the hammer spring 16. Arranged to seat against the felt of the hammer rest rail is a hammer stem 17 upon the outer end of which is mounted a hammer 18 having a head 18*. All of these parts may be of standard construction except the wippen which is slightly modified in accordance with the present invention.

The hammer-butt 20 is formed with a leather covered shoulder 21 which is located higher up on the hammer-butt than in a conventional construction, or farther from the pivotal point of the hammer-butt. This location of the shoulder is necessary for two reasons; first, the jack will move with greater ease to aposition under the shoulder, and second, more room is left below the shoulder for a projecting tooth 22. This tooth is formed by recessing the adj acent face of the hammer-butt as at 23 immediately below the shoulder 21 so that the leather of the shoulder forms one wall of the 4recess. The recess is lined with felt as at 2 The upper end, of the hamm -butt 20 is formed with an upwardly and outwardly curved extension or arm 26 which carries upon it a downwardly extending back stop adapted to engage with the jack and lock the hammer upon the rebound thereof. Preferably, this stop has the form shown in Figs. 1 to (3, and is pivoted in a bifurcation 27 formed in the outer end of the extension. The back stop 28 extends toward the base of the hammer-butt and is preferably curved inward longitudinally thereof toward the hammer-butt. The upper end of the back stop projects above the extension 26 and is notched as at 29 for engagement with one end of a slightly bowed spring 30, the other end of which engages in a notch 31 formed at the junction of the hammerbutt with the stem 17. This spring 30 tends to force the free end of the back stop 28 inward toward the hammer-butt.

In order to limit the inward movement of the lower end of the back stop 28 under the impulse of the spring 30, I provide the relatively small screw threaded stop pin 32 which passes through the back stop and is headed on its inner end to engage a felt 33 carried by a shoulder formed on the outer extremity of the extension 26. The outer end of the pin 32 is formed to receive a screw driver whereby it may be readily adjusted to hold the free end of the back stop 28 nearer to or farther from the hammerbutt.

It will be seen that the lower end of the back stop lies in a plane above the shoulder 21 and the adjacent extremity thereof is preferably V-shaped or formed with oppositely beveled faces 34 and 35. These faees 34C and 35 may be covered with thin, split buckskin to fully assure silence of contact therebetween and the ack.

The usual jack has the form of a bell crank lever, one arm of which extends upward into engagement with the hammerbutt and the other arm of which extends outwardly or away from the main action rail into position to be engaged by the stop on the regulating rail. In order to place the regulating rail and the jack tripping mechanism between the main rail and the jack, the jack of the present invention is made with a long and a short arm disposed in angular relation to each other and is mounted with the short arm thereof extending toward the action rail 2 instead of in a reverse direction as-in the case of a conventional type of jack.

My improved jack is designated 36 and the free extremity of the short arm 37 thereof is pivoted to the jack flange 38 carried by the wippen 6. A coil spring 39 extends between the wippen and the adjacent face of the jack. In its normal position, as illustrated in Fig. 1. the under face of the jack extends at aright angle to the upper edge of the flange 38 and in order to permit the jack to take the position shown in dotted lines, the adjacent face of the wippen'is beveled as at 40. The long arm of the jack extends upward and toward the hammer-butt and at its upper end is provided with an outwardly projecting tooth 41 adapted to engage with the leather 21 on the shoulder 21 of the hammer-butt. In other words, the tooth 41 is normally received within the recess 23 and beneath the shoulder 21 as illustrated in Fig. 1. The upper end of the jack, above the tooth 41, is curved to conform to the contour of the face of the leather 21 so that when the hammer is in its full retracted position as in Fig. 1, this leather will fit uniformly against the upper end of the jack and hold it in proper position in snug engagement with the hammer-butt. In order to trip the jack, I provide a regulating or jacktripping rail 42 which is rigidly attached to the main rail 2 and extends outward therefrom toward the jack. This rail 42 is made in sections reaching from one action. bracket (not shown) to another. The tripping rail has, at the outer extremity thereof, a felt 43 on its lower face.

Mounted upon the jack in the reentrant angle formed by its long and short arms, is the tripping finger 44 which is illustrated in detail in Figs. 5 and 7. This tripping finger projects toward the action rail and upward toward the tripping rail 42 and is adapted to come in contact with the felt 43, as the jack rises under the impulse of the wippen, to turn the jack upon the pivot 45 and throw the upper end of the jack outward. Preferably, the finger 44 is pivoted at 46 and is carried in a recess or slot 4'7 formed in the jack at the junction of the arms thereof. This finger projects at its inner extremity inwardly beyond the inner face of the jack, as illustrated in F 5 and is terminally provided upon the upper side thereof, with a rounded face 48 which is preferably covered with a facing of black lead or like lubricating material and is adapted to contact with the lower face of the felt 43 as the ack rises.

The tripping finger 44 is adjustable by means of a screw stop pin 49 which passes down through a shoulder 50 formed on the butt end of the long arm of the jack and confronts the outer end of the finger. Byadjusting this screw in one direction, the inner end of the finger 44 may be moved upward with relation to the axis of the jack so as to contact with the felt 43 at one point in the path of the rising movement of the jack. By adjusting the stop pin in the other direction, the finger 44 will be caused to contact with the felt 43 at a point in the path of the rising movement of h j k above said fi t mentioned point or at a time subsequent to the former instant of contact of the finger with the felt. Thus, the instant of contact between the finger 44 and the tripping rail 42 may be readily and delicately controlled.

The upper extremity of the jack, upon the side thereof opposite the tooth 41, is formed with a recess 51 defined by felt blocks 52 and 53, this recess being V-shaped or having oppositely beveled walls adapted to snugly fit the V-shaped or beveled extremity of the stop 28. It is to be noted that the face of the felt 53 is slightly curved to conform to the slightly curved face 34 of the stop 28 while the face of the felt 52 is fiat to conform to the flat face 35 of the stop. The felts 52 and 53 are preferably employed so as to secure the very least frictional contact between the back stop 28 and the jack, thereby permitting the jack to easily slip over the face of the free extremity of the stop but I do not wish to be limited to the use of these felts as it will be obvious that this notch or recess 51 might be formed in the solid wood of the jack if desired.

While I have shown a very definite and preferable location for the tripping finger 44 with relation to the pivot of the jack, I do not wish to limit myself to any precise arrangement of these parts with relation to each other and in Fig. 5, have illustrated by diagram, a certain area within which this tripping finger may be positioned and still achieve more or less completely the results desired. In this figure, the line aa is drawn from the upper corner of the teeth 41 through the pivot 45 of the ack. A line b7) is drawn through the pivot 45 at right angles to the line aa. C indicates a circle struck with the pivot 45 as its center and which intersects the line aa at one-third the distance between the pivot 45 and the point (6 indicating the upper corner of the tooth 41. The quadrant designated 0 and defined by the lines a. and Z) in connection with the circle, the said quadrant including the pivot of the finger 44, is the area within which the tripping member may be located.

It will be seen then that I have provided a tripping member or regulating rail supported between the jack and the strings of the instrument and adapted to contact with a shoulder, finger, abutment or tripping member, either rigid or adjustably mounted on the jack at a point within the boundaries of the said quadrant. Such a construction, arranged as described, gives a quick kickoff to the jack and allows the jack to tip forward.

I have found by experiment that the location of the tripping finger in the area above defined is of great importance, as 1 thereby not only secure a quick kick'oif to the jack as previously stated, but also eliminate any sliding movement of the jack relative to the tripping member. If the tripping finger or point of contact between the tripping rail and the jack'were located above or beyond the quadrant a, there would be frictional resistance as the jack moved outward. Furthermore, the nearer the tripping finger is located to the pivotal point of the jack, the quicker the kick-off. It is obvious, however, that the leverage required to trip the jack will be decreased correspondingly as the tripping finger is located nearer to the pivotal point of the jack and therefore, I have preferably located the tripping finger at the junction of the long and short arms of the jack. In this connection, attention is called to the fact that when the key is depressed as shown in Fig. 3, the pivotal points of the regulating screw of the key with the abstract, the abstract with the wippen and the contacting face of the finger 14 are very nearly in a direct line. As a consequence, the finger is; has a rocking engagement with the felt 43 as will be seen and not a frictional engagement, thus doing away with any retardation of the jack. It is also to be pointed out that the peculiar shape of the jack not only provides for 10- cating the tripping devices between the jack and the action rail, but also provides a jack which has a certain amount of elasticity, thus acting to greatly improve the touch of the piano. In the standard upright piano action, where the jack is pivoted at the junction of the long and short arms of the jack, the upward thrust of the wippen is transmitted in a straight line from the jack to the coacting shoulder of the hammer-butt and there can be no yielding of the jack. Vith my construction, the jack having angularly disposed arms and being pivoted at the outer end of the short arm thereof, acts to a certain extent like a spring and the impulse given by the wippen is not transmitted directly upward in a straight line as in the ordinary jack.

The operation of the invention as described, is as follows: Vhen the key is struck, the parts are thrown into the position shown in Fig. 2, the hammer striking the string and the jack taking the position with the adjacent curved face of the felt 53 only partly contacting with the face 34; of the back stop 28. The force depressing the key tends to throw the upper end of the jack outward, that is, away from the hammer-butt, and as a consequence, the felt 53 tends to slide against the face 34- of the back stop and thus draw the hammer back to the position shown in Fig. 3. In this position, the hammer is absolutely and positively locked by the engagement of the wedge shaped extremity of the back stop 28 with the V-shaped recess 51. Assuming that the key is still depressed, the

hammer when locked, cannot move either inward against the strings or outward away therefrom and the hammer will be thus held free from contact with the strings themselves, but in such position that a repetition of the note may be easily sounded. As the key is released, the upper end of the hammer will move outwardly under the impulse of the spring 16 and at the same time, the upper face of the tooth ll will move down beneath the shoulder 21 to the position illustrated in Fig. 1. If for any reason the hammer should stick, the downward movement of the jack 36 would cause the tooth a1 to engage the tooth 22 forming the lower wall of the recess 23 and the weight of the jack and connected parts would then retract the hammer.

It is to be understood that the position shown in Fig. 3 is taken almost instantaneously with the striking of the hammer with the strings. Immediately, upon a rebound of the hammer, the stop 28 makes its locked engagement with the jack. The position shown in Fig. 2 is only instantaneous and the hammer instantaneously shifts to the position shown in Fig. 3.

By adjusting the back stop 28, the jack when tripped may be locked either nearer to or farther from the leather 21. Conse quently, the backstop may be so positioned that the shoulder or tooth 41 of the jack will be held very close to the leather 21 when the jack is tripped so that upon a release of the key, there will be no lost motion and the jack will immediately shift to the position shown in Fig. 1.

It is to be noted that the shoulder 21 is so placed relative to the pivot of the hammer-butt, that the jack may readily move into position beneath the said shoulder when the key is released, and that, pending such release, for the parts to take the position shown in Fig. 4, the back stop 28 will positively prevent any downward movement of the hammer from the position shown in Fig. 3 for the reason that the face 35 of the back stop will contact with the upper face of the felt 52 to support the hammer. In the ordinary form of piano action, after the key has been depressed and the hammer moved to its position of a check, a further and relatively slight movement of the key, such as given where a light repetition of the note is desired, tends to shift the hammer downward relative to the jack and cause it to become inoperative, the jack then contacting with the upper end of the hammer leather instead of with the shoulder of the hammerbutt. Furthermore, in the ordinary piano action, the back stop and the back check only tend to prevent the outward movement of the hammer upon the rebound thereof and there is merely frictional engagement between the back stop and the back check. Thus when the note is repeated lightly, so that the jack merely shifts relative to the hammer-butt the back check and stop are slightly separated at each repetition and the hammer moves farther and farther away from the strings.

In the present invention, the hammer, when in check is always held at a certain distance from the strings without regard as to whether the note is struck lightly or heavily. In the ordinary piano action, the hammer will rebound a considerably greater distance from the strings when the key is struck with force than when struck lightly. As a consequence, the jack varies in its distance from the hammer-butt shoulder. In the present construction, the position taken by the jack relative to the shoulder of the hammer-butt is always the same, no matter with what force the key is struck. This distance may be varied by adjusting the back stop 28. The back stop, therefore, acts not only as a stop to limit the outward movement of the hammer upon a rebound after striking the strings, but also acts to limit the movement of the jack relative to the shoulder of the hammer-butt for holding the jack in such position that it may readily slip back beneath the said shoulder upon a slight release of the key. Thus very rapid and light repetitions of a note may be made with certainty. The spring 30 will yield to any overstroke movement of the key caused by a sagged key bed or by impaired punchings. Furthermore, this spring 30 permits the back stop to engage elastically with the jack when the jack and stop come together. The back stop being yieldably urged, will move slightly when engaged by the jack so that the beveled faces 34: and 35 of the back stop will conform more exactly to the beveled walls of the recess 51, this being important in securing a positive engagement between the. back stop and the upper end of the jack.

By using the back stop 28 in connection with my improved jack, I eliminate the necessity of employing a back check and its supporting rod, while the teeth 22 and l1 do the work of the! usual bridle tape and supporting wire therefor. This permits me to reduce the length of the wippen and considerably economize space in front of the piano action. Piano player actions are usually set in front of the piano action and every fraction of an inch of additional space which can be gained is of value.

I have found in practice, that my improved action secures one great desideratum: that is, a light touch. With two keys balanced alike, one engaging an ordinary piano action and the other my improved action, I find that it only requires one and one half ounces to actuate the key of the improved action, while the key associated with the old action requires two ounces.

In Fig. 1, I show the position to which the jack may be moved when it is desired to re move the screw of the hammer flange 11. The back stop 28 is moved to the position shown in dotted lines against the action of the spring 30 and the jack may be then swung downwardly, compressing the spring 39 until such position is reached that a screw driver may be inserted over the top of the jack and engaged with the screw 11. It is not necessary, as will be obvious, to remove any of the parts or to strain the jack laterally to the injury of its pivot.

In Fig. 8, I have illustrated a modification of the invention wherein the hammerbutt 55 is provided with an extension 56 to which is rigidly attached a back stop 57. Associated with the hammer-butt is a jack 58 which is pivoted to the jack flange, not

shown, at 59. Mounted upon the jack is a tripping finger 60 while the body of the jack at the upper extremity thereof, is provided with a tooth 61 adapted to engage the shoulder 55 of the hammer-butt. From the previous description, it is thought that the operation of these several elements will be readily understood. Arranged upon the long arm of the jack is an adjustable back check 62 which is pivotally connected to the jack at 63. The body of the back check is slightly bowed longitudinally thereof and carries a screw threaded pin 64 having a limiting head 65. Interposed between the back check 62 and the body of the jack is the coil spring 66 which acts to force the back check out against the head 65. By adjusting the pin 64: in or out, the free end of the back check may be positioned nearer to or farther from the back stop 57. The upper end of the back check, upon the outer face thereof, is recessed to receive the wedge shaped extremity of the back stop 57., this recess being lined with felt blocks 67 and 68 which correspond to the felt blocks 52 and 53 on the jack 36. This form of jack and back stop gives the same results as the form previously described except that in this form, it is necessary to remove the key in order to expose the hammer flange screw. Removing the key allows the jack to descend far enough to clear the upper extremity of the back stop when the jack may be tilted forward so that a screw driver may be inserted over the jack to engage the said screw.

It is to be noted that in both forms of my invention, the back stop 28 or 57 has its jaclcengaging face nearer to the coacting hammer head than is the hammer-butt flange pivot and nearer also to the coacting hammer head than is the hammer-butt shoulder 21 or 55.

This will be clear by reference to the dotted lines in Fig. 8. The line DD indicates the aXis of the hammer stem. The line EE, it will be seen is drawn at right angles to the line D-D and intersects the outer extremity of the back stop 57. The line F F intersects the hammer-butt shoulder 55 or the face of the leather covering the said shoulder, and the line GG intersects the hammer-butt flange pivot.

In the ordinary upright piano action, the hammer-butt shoulder is located (when the parts are in their normal position) about on a horizontal line cutting the pivot of the hammer-butt whereas, in the present construction, as will be seen from Fig. 8, the shoulder 55 is located considerably above the hammer-butt pivot. Furthermore, the point of engagement between the back stop and the jack is considerably above the face of the shoulder 55.

The location of the shoulder 55 relative to the pivot of the hammer-butt and the location of the point of engagement between the back stop 57 and the jack is very important. If the point of engagement between the back stop and the jack is below the pivotal center of the hammer-butt, the hammer will block on an overstroke, whereas, by placing the point of engagement between the back stop and the jack above the shoulder of the hammer-butt and between the pivotal point of the hammer-butt and the hammer head, the upward movement of the jack cannot continue such distance as to hold the hammer against the strings upon an overstroke. In other words, the jack will not, under these circumstances, continue in its upward movement to remain in contact with the hammer-butt when the hammer strikes the strings, but will be released from the hammer-butt prior to that time, thus giving an elastic touch even on an overstroke. Furthermore, by placing the hammer-butt shoulder above the pivotal point of the hammer-butt, I permit an ordinary hammer flange to be used whereas, when said shoulder is located below or on a line with the pivot of the hammer-butt, a flange of special construction must be used to sup port the hammer. Again, in so locating the hammer-butt shoulder and the point of engagement between the back stop and the upper end of the jack, the jack, upon a return of the hammer to normal position, is caused to be thrown inward and not outward. It will be seen from Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4 that the plane of the beveled lower face 35 of the back stop 28, if continued inward, would intersect the hammer-butt at a point distant from the hammer pivot less than one-sixth of the entire distance from the hammer pivot to the upper face of the hammer head. This is of great importance in the operation of the present mechanism. If the face had a greater bevel so that the plane of the face would intersect the hammer-butt at a point greater in distance from the hammer-butt pivot than one-sixth of the distance between the pivot and the hammer head, the inclination of the said face would be so great that the jack would not engage the back stop to hold the hammer in its locked position, but the hammer would rebound from the strings, as in a standard piano action employing an ordinary back stop. There would not be the positive locking engagement between the jack and the back stop which is one of the principal features of my invention.

In Figs. 9 and 10, I show a modification of my invention in which the regulating rail instead of being fixed to the main rail is adj ustably mounted thereon so that it may be shifted toward or from the jack. In these figures, designates the main rail of the piano action, 71 the wippen, 72 the wippen flange, 73 the jack flange, 74 the lower end of the jack illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4, the upper portion of the jack being broken away, and 75 designates the hammer-butt flange. All of these parts are as previously described. Mounted upon the front face of the main rail 70 is an adjustable regulating rail formed with a base 76. This base is provided with a plurality of vertical slots 77 through which pass the attaching screws 78 or other attaching means. The heads of these attaching screws are wider than the slots 77 and hence, when the screws are turned home, they will hold the regulating rail rigidly in place upon the main rail. Though the regulating rail is adjustable, yet, when it is fastened in place by the screws 78 it is rigid relative to the jack. It will be seen that in assembling the action. the regulating rail may be initially adjusted in an approximately proper position and if later found necessary, a subsequent accurate adjustment in the position of the rail with relation to the jack may then be had. Interposed between the base 76 of the regulating rail and the main rail is a washer 79 of any suitable construction. The base 76 is formed with an outwardly projecting flange 80 which is equivalent of the projecting regulating rail illustrated in the other views. The lower face of this projection or flange 80 is slightly beveled along its outer edge and is there provided with a felt strip 81 with which the finger 82 on the jack 74 is adapted to contact when the jack is raised. It will be observed that this regulating rail acts in a manner similar to the regulating rail previously described. The only difference is that the rail is adjustable so that it may be shifted toward or from the finger 82 of the jack and the instant of contact between the said rail and the finger thereby regulated. The jack, in this modification, is

provided with an adjusting screw such as previously described whereby the inclination of the finger 82 may be regulated. The angular disposition of the portion of the regulating rail acts to prevent the rail from warping and thus eliminates this trouble which is incident to the ordinary regulating rail and which acts to throw the regulating abutments out of proper position to make frequent adjustment of these abutments necessary.

In Figs. 11 and 12, I have shown a modified form of hammer-butt and back stop which is very similar to the hammer-butt and back stop illustrated in Fig. 8. In this modification, the back stop instead of being. prolonged to form a pin extending into an opening in the hammer-butt, is provided with a tongue, while the adjacent face of the hammer-butt at its upper end, is formed with a kerf or groove to receive this tongue. In Fig. 11, A designates a piece of molding from which a plurality of hammer butts are to be made, while B designates a molding from which the back stops are to be sawed.

-Formed in the front face of the butt molding at the upper end thereof, is a longitudinally extending groove 83 while the stop molding is formed, at its inner end, with a longitudinally extending tongue 84: adapted to be inserted in the groove 83 and glued in place. After the two members have been rigidly connected, the molding is to be sliced off so as to form a plurality of elements similar to that illustrated in Fig. 12, the hammer-butt being designated 85 and the back stop 86. It will be seen that by this construction, the butts and stops can be made up in stock in long strips to be later cut up into individual elements each including a hammer-butt and coacting back stop. In this manner, the cost of making the butts and stops may be very much reduced since the necessity of a separate boring for each separate stop and the necessity of forming a stem upon each stop will be eliminated.

I, of course, do not wish to limit myself to any particular form of jack and in Fig. 13 have illustrated a modified form of jack 87 to which my invention may be equally well applied, as to the jack illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4.

What I claim is:

l. A piano action including an action rail, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jackbeing pivotally mounted at the free end of its short arm, and means disposed between the jack and the action rail for tripping the jack.

2. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally connected at the free end of its short arm with the wippen, and means disposed between the jack and the action rail for tripping the jack as the latter is raised by the wippen.

A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally connected at the free end of its short arm with the wippen, and means entirely disposed between the jack and the action rail for tripping the jack.

4-. A piano action including an action rail, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally mounted at the free end of its short arm, a member projecting from the jack at the junction of its arms and projecting toward the rail, and means entirely disposed between the ack and rail for engaging said member and tripping the jack.

5. A piano action including an action rail, a j aek having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally mounted at the free end of the short arm, and tripping means disposed between the jack and the action rail and adapted to engage the jack in a plane between its pivotal point and the intersection of the long and short arms when the jack is raised.

6. A piano action including an angular jack, having an upwardly extending long arm and a short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally mount ed at the free end of its short arm, and means disposed between the j ack and the action fail adapted to engage the jack between its pivotal point and the intersection of the long and short arms of the jack for tripping the same, and means for adjusting the instant of contact between the jack and tripping device relative to the movement of the jack.

7. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail. said jack being pivotally mounted upon the wippen at the free end of its short arm. a tripping rail mounted upon the action rail in. the path of movement of the jack, a member on the face of the jack adjacent to the action rail with which the tripping rail engages as the jack is lifted by the wippen, and means for relatively adjusting the contacting faces of the tripping rail and abutment to control the instant of contact relative to the movement of the jack.

8. A piano action including an action rail,

a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, said jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the free end of its short arm, a tripping rail mounted upon the action rail and extending toward the jack, and a member coacting with the tripping rail and mounted upon the jack at the intersection of its long and short arms, said member projecting toward the tripping rail and having a rounded face.

9. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an an gular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, said jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the free end of its short arm, a tripping rail mounted upon th action rail and extending toward the jack, and a member coacting with the tripping member and mounted upon the jack at the intersection of its long and short arms, said member being adjustable nearer to or farther from the tripping rail.

10. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, said jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the free end of its short arm, a tripping member projecting into the path of the jack, a member coacting with the tripping member and mounted upon the jack at the intersection of its long and short arms and projecting toward the tripping member, and means for adjustably shifting said last named member nearer to or farther from the tripping member.

11. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, said jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the free end of its short arm, a tripping rail mounted upon the face of the action railand extending toward the jack and into its path of movement, a tripping finger pivoted to the jack, projecting toward the tripping rail and coacting therewith, and means operatively mounted upon the jack for adjustably ro-- tating said tripping member upon its pivot.

12. A piano action including a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the jack being pivotally mounted at the free end of its short arm, a tripping member projecting into the path of movement of the jack and disposed adjacent to the short arm thereof, a tripping finger pivoted to the jack at the intersection of its long and short arms and projecting toward said tripping member, and a screw pin engaging the finger and adapted to adjust the finger nearer to or farther from the tripping member.

13. An upright piano action including an action rail, a jack having an angularly disposed short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally mounted at the end of its short arm, and a tripping member disposed between the jack and the action rail and engaging with the jack at a point located within an area bounded by a line joining the pivot of the jack and the hammer butt engaging end thereof, a line intersecting said pivot and extending at right angles to said first-named line and stroke through said jack, and an arc struck from the pivotal point of the jack and having a radius equal to the radius of the short arm of the jack.

1 1. An upright piano action including an action rail, a wippen, an angular jack having a short arm and a long arm, the short arm of the jack projecting from the lower end of the long arm and extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally connected at the free end of its short arm to said wippen, a hammer mounted upon the action rail with which said jack is adapted to engage, and means for tripping the jack.

15. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a short arm, the short arm of said lever extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the end of its short arm, a tripping member disposed between the jack and the adjacent face of the action rail, and a finger mounted upon the jack at the intersection of the long arm with the short arm and projecting toward the tripping member and being adapted to engage with said tripping member as the jack rises, the face of the finger being rounded.

16. A piano action including an action rail, a hammer-butt pivotally mounted upon the action rail and having a recess in its lower end, a wippen, a jack having the form of an angular lever having a long and a. short arm, the short arm extending toward the action rail, the jack being pivotally connected to the wippen at the free end of its short arm, means disposed in the path of movement of the jack and located between the jack and action rail for tripping the jack, a back stop carried upon the hammer and projecting over the jack and downward beyond the upper end of the same, the jack and back stop being formed upon their adjacent faces with an interengaging recess and projection, the other face of the jack being formed with a projection engaging in the recess formed upon the face of the hammer-butt.

17. A piano action including a hammer including a hammer head and a hammerbutt, a jack, and a back stop mounted on the hammer-butt, the jack and back stop being formed, one with a tooth, triangular in section and the other with a correspondingly-shaped recess to receive the tooth, the extremity of the tooth being disposed in a plane extending at right angles to the hammer shank and lying between the hammerbutt pivot and the hammer and the hammer head.

18. A piano action including a hammerbutt, a jack, a back stop mounted on .the hammer-butt, the jack projecting up be tween the stop and the hammer-butt, the stop being triangular at its terminal end and the adjacent face of the jack being formed with a correspondingly shaped recess to engage with said terminal end when the jack is thrown outward.

19. An upright piano action including a pivoted hammer-butt, a stem and a hammer head, a back-stop mounted on the hammerbutt, and a jack, the upper end of the jack extending into the space between the back stop and the hammer-butt, the back stop and jack having one a recess and the other a tooth fitting the recess and disposed in a plane extending at right angles to the stem and intersecting the stem between the pivotal center of the hammer-butt and the head.

20. A piano action including a pivoted hammer butt, a stem and hammer head, a back stop mounted on the hammer butt, and a jack the free end of which is disposed between the back stop and hammer butt, the butt being provided with a shoulder disposed at right angles to the axial line of the stem and intermediate the pivotal point of the hammer butt and the head of the hammer, the jack and back stop being formed with portions engaging with each other when the jack is tripped, the extremity of the back stop being disposed in a plane extending at r1ght angles to the longitudinal axis of the stem and intermediate a plane cutting the shoulder of the hammer butt and a parallel plane extending through the head of the hammer at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the stem.

21. A piano action including a hammerbutt, a jack, the hammer-butt having an extension arching over the free end of the jack, a back stop pivotally mounted on the extension, the extremity of the back stop being adapted to engage and lock the jack when the jack is tripped, a spring acting to force the extremity of the stop toward the jack, and means for adjustably holding the back stop in a desired relation to the jack and against the force ofsaid spring.

22. A piano action including a hammerbutt, a jack, said hammer-butt having an extension arching over the free end of the ack, a back stop pivotally mounted on the extension, said back stop being curved and formed with a wedge-shaped termination, a spring acting to force the wedge-shaped terminal end of the stop toward the jack, and a limiting pin acting to hold the back stop in an adjusted position against the force of the spring, the upper end of the jack being provided with a recess for engaging with the terminal end of the stop.

23. An upright piano-action including an action rail, a hammer-butt pivoted thereto, a pivotally mounted jack, a back stop pivoted upon the hammer-butt and disposed 1n the path of the outward pivotal move ment of the jack, the back stop being shiftable outwardly to clear the upper end of the jack whereby the jack may be turned outwardly away from the hammer-butt, resilient means yieldably resisting the outward movement of the back stop, and means limiting the inward pivotal movement of the back stop against the action of said resilient means.

24. A piano action including an action rail, a hammer-butt mounted thereon, a wippen, a jack pivotally connected to the wippen, means for tripping the jack, a back stop pivotally mounted on the hammer-butt and normally extending over the upper extremity of the jack to engage the jack when tripped, the back stop being shiftable out of the path of pivotal movement of the jack to permit the jack to be turned outwardly away from the hammer-butt, resilient means yieldably resisting the outward pivotal movement of the back stop, and adjustable means for limiting the inward pivotal moyiement of the said back stop toward the ac 25. A piano action including an action rail, a hammer-butt mounted thereon, a wippen, a jack pivotally connected to the wippen, means for tripping the jack, a back stop pivotally mounted on the hammer butt and normally extending downwardly and inwardly over the upper end of the jack, the back stop being adapted to engage the jack when the jack is tripped, a spring normally holding the back stop in the path of the outward pivotal movement of the jack, and means limiting the action of said spring for holding the back stop normally spaced from the jack.

26. An upright piano-action including an action rail, a hammer-butt mounted thereon, a wippen, a jack pivotally mounted upon the wippen, means for tripping the jack, a back stop carried by the hammer-butt and having one extremity thereof extending to a point beyond the free extremity of the jack in spaced relation thereto, the back stop being adapted to engage the jack when the jack is tripped, and means for limiting the inward movement of the said extremity of the back stop against the action of said resilient means, the said extremity of the back stop being free to move outward under the influence of the jack.

27. A piano action including an action rail, a wippen, a jack having a long and short arm disposed in angular relation to each other, the short arm extending toward the action rail and being pivotally connected at its extremity to said wippen, and a tripping member disposed in the line of movement of the short arm of the jack and located between the jack and the action rail, said tripping member being adjustable toward or from the short arm of the jack and operatively engaging a portion of the jack between the long arm and the pivotal point of the ack whereby to trip the latter.

28. An upright piano action including an action rail, a jack provided with arms disposed in angular relation to each other and having one arm thereof extending upward and the other arm extending toward the action rail, a wippen upon which the last-named arm is pivoted to support the jack, and a tripping member supported upon the action rail and shiftable vertically toward or from the lower end of the jack, said tripping member including a cushion contacting with a portion of the jack between the pivotal point thereof and the upwardly extending arm to thereby trip the jack upon an upward movement of the jack.

29. A piano action including a main rail,

a jack having an angularly disposed arm,

said jack being pivoted at the extremity of its angularly extending arm, and a regulating rail adjustable upon the main rail toward or from the angular arm of the jack,

said regulating rail having an outwardly projecting flange disposed in the path of movement of the angular termination of the jack and adapted to trip the jack as the jack r1ses.

30. An upright piano action including a main rail, a jack having arms arranged in angular relation to each other, said jack being pivoted at the extremity of one of said arms, and a regulating rail adjustable upon the main rail toward or from the pivoted arm of the jack, said regulating rail having an outwardly projecting flange disposed in the path of movement of the pivoted arm of said jack and adapted to trip the jack as the jack rises.

31. An upright piano action including a hammer-butt, a jack having a head, the outer face of the head being formed with a recess, a bodily yieldable catcher carried by the butt and extending outward and downward over the head of the jack, the end of the catcher being engageable in said recess when the hammer is in check, a spring acting to urge the lower end of the catcher toward the jack, and means limiting inward movement of the lower end of the catcher under the action of the spring.

3:2. An upright piano action including a hammer-butt having an upwardly and outwardly extending portion, a jack having an enlarged head at its upper end, said head having a notch formed upon its outer face, and a catcher pivotally mounted on the extension of the butt and extending downward and outward over the head of the jack, the lower end of the catcher co-acting with said notch and engaging therewith when the hammer is in check, a spring urging the lower end of the catcher toward the jack, and an adjustable stop limiting the inward movement of the catcher under the influence of the spring and preventing the engagement of the catcher with the jack when the hammer is out of check.

33. An upright piano action including a hammer-butt, a jack having an enlarged head, the outer face of the head being upwardly and outwardly inclined, a bodily yieldable back stop carried by the hammerbutt and extending outwardly and downwardly over the head of the jack, a spring acting to urge the lower end of the back stop toward the jack, and means limiting the inward movement of the lower end of the back stop under the action of the spring.

ea. An upright piano action including a hammer-butt having an upwardly and outwardly extended portion, a jack having an enlarged head at its upper end, said head having an upwardly and outwardly inclined outer face, a back stop pivotally mounted on the extension of the hammerbutt and extending downward and outward over the head of the jack, the inner face of the lower end of said back stop coacting with the outer face of the head and engaging therewith when the hammer is in check, a spring urging the lower end of the backstop toward the jack, and an adjustable stop limiting the inward movement of the back,- stop under the influence of the spring and preventing the engagement of the back stop with the jack when the hammer is out of check.

35. An upright piano action including a hammer-butt having an upwardly and outwardly inclined shoulder, and an upward and outward extension above the shoulder, said hammer butt below the shoulder carrying an outwardly projecting member, a back stop pivotally mounted at its upper end upon the extension of the hammer-butt and 1 upper end, the outer face of the head being formed to coact with the inner face of the lower end of the back stop and the inside of the head being formed with a tooth adapted to engage between the shoulder and said proj ecting member at the lower end of the hammer-butt.

86. In an upright piano action, an action rail, a wippen pivotally mounted thereon, a hammer-butt pivotally mounted upon the action rail and having a shoulder and being upwardly and outwardly extended beyond said shoulder, said hammer-butt below the shoulder being formed with an outwardly extending tripping member spaced from the shoulder, a back stop pivoted to the upper end of the extension of the hammer-butt and extending downward and outward, the lower end of the back stop being formed with an upwardly and outwardly inclined face, a

.spring urging the lower end of the back stop inward, an adjustable stop for adjusting the position of the back stop, and a jack pivoted to the wippen and formed at its upper end with a tooth extending beneath the shoulder on the hammer-butt, the other face of the jack being inclined upward and outward to coact with the inner faces of the lower end of the back stop.

37. In an upright piano action, an action rail, a wippen pivotally mounted thereon, a hammer-butt pivotally mounted thereon, the said hammer-butt being formed with a shoulder extending upward away from the action rail, said shoulder being cushioned, said hammer-butt being also formed with an upward and outward extension bifurcated at its end, a back stop pivoted in the bifurcated end of the extension, the back stop being curved downward and outward upwardly and outwardly inclined face coacting with the inner face of the lower end of the back stop, said hammer-butt being provided with a projecting felt block below the shoulder and spaced therefrom.

38. A piano action including a hammerbutt, a hammer stem projecting therethrough, a hammer stop carried by the hammer-butt, and a jack, the stop extending around the end of the jack and engaging therewith when in check, the extremity of the stop having a beveled lower face, the plane of said face intersecting the axis of the hammer stem at a point distant from the hammer pivot less than one-sixth of the distance from such pivot to the outer face of the hammer-head.

In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE C. SNYDER.

Witnesses:

J. R. A. LANG, A. V. W. SETLEY,

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of I'atents, Washington, D. G. 

